Grabbing the last 2 loaves of the day! Heading up into the West Maui Mountains, we careen and twist around curves that open to one magnificent vista after another. Winding, winding, winding, up and up and up, the mountain pass narrows to one lane. To the left, there are steep cliffs dropping hundreds of feet to the ocean below. To the right, lush palms, tropical foliage and flowers everywhere. And just ahead, marking the midway point of our tenuous half-day journey, a burst of lime green... Julia’s Banana Bread Shack... home of the “World’s Best Banana Bread,” and an icon written up in virtually every travel guide about Maui.
We spill out from our ride and beeline for the stand to find a sweet-faced wahine (woman) behind the counter who is not the famous Julia, but her less famous cousin Jan. Jovial and inviting, she offers samples the revered bread and some of her homemade liliko’i (passion fruit) butter. We buy 2 loaves, the last of her day’s baking, and jump back into the jeep to head up the final steep pass before the long wind-down the other side of the mountain. As we're pulling away, our mouths already stuffed full of the deliciously rich and nutty bread, we give a half-hearted nod of pity toward a couple just arriving to this bread Mecca who are about to find out that they’re not going to get any of the good stuff today.
Thankfully, Julia is apparently okay with giving out her coveted recipe. Check out Bon Appétit's feature: http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/julias-best-banana-bread
We spill out from our ride and beeline for the stand to find a sweet-faced wahine (woman) behind the counter who is not the famous Julia, but her less famous cousin Jan. Jovial and inviting, she offers samples the revered bread and some of her homemade liliko’i (passion fruit) butter. We buy 2 loaves, the last of her day’s baking, and jump back into the jeep to head up the final steep pass before the long wind-down the other side of the mountain. As we're pulling away, our mouths already stuffed full of the deliciously rich and nutty bread, we give a half-hearted nod of pity toward a couple just arriving to this bread Mecca who are about to find out that they’re not going to get any of the good stuff today.
Thankfully, Julia is apparently okay with giving out her coveted recipe. Check out Bon Appétit's feature: http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/julias-best-banana-bread
Julia's Best Banana Bread, recipe & photo: Bon Appetit Magazine March 2013
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